Packing box



Fehn. 1925.

M. L. URANN 1526884 PACKING BOX Filed July 27, 192s Patented Feb. 17, 1.925.

U blfllllll) PATIENT lF F l @E Mancusn URANN; or nnnrnrnnn,"raassacrrnsn'rrs,,Assrenon To man narran `carri con CRANB'ERRY coMPANY, or sorr'rn Hanson, MASSACHUSETTS, A oonronarron 1or MAINE,

PACKING BOX.

aApplicationledulya?, 1.923. `Serial No.1654,165.

To iaZZ whom w/ay concern.'

VBe itknownthat L-MARoUs L.URANN, a citizen of theiUnitedvStates, residing at Braintree,in the `county `of-lfl'orfolk, State of Massachusetts,have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in 'Packing Boxes, of which the following is a specifica tion, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

The invention relatesto anew and useful improvement inlpacking boxes. It relates especially to boxes `in Vwhich berries are `packed `and shipped tothe market, and is more particularly intended for use in packw ing and shippingcranberries, although the invention is `not limited toboxesfor use with cranberries,` but `may be-applied to boxes or 5 shipping cases inwhich fruit or any other kind of article may be packed to which the invention is adapted. Boxesforthispurpose are usuallyimade to `contain a certain standard amountA or quantity of the berries x and isof rectangularform. 1 The box is usually provided witha cover which is placed on the boxandl fastened down after the box has" been filled. lIf the boxV is larger than is required for the standard quantity of berries `which are to be packed therein, so that" the box; istnot quite 'full,`the berries will `rattle around and the movement of the berries against each other will cause them to become bruised and make them damp, so that they will not keep well and the buyer will suspect slack pack. If, on the other hand, any undue pressure is applied to crowd the berries down into the box, some of the berries will become crushed and they will spoil. With ordinary boxes, if the berries are hun riedly packed, as for instance, by just pouring them into the box, there is a tendency for the berries in the corners to become loosely piled on top of each other with spaces which are bridged over by berries in the dilferent layers, and when the box is handled during the shipping and is shaken, these berries will settle down, leaving conn siderable loose space, so that the berries will rattle around. In order to overcome this, it has been common to carefully pack the corners by hand so as to completely lill the corners and leave no unnecessary spaces. This takes considerable time and materially increases the expense of packing.

One object of the present invention is t0 provide a covei1 for the box with a pressure member on the under side, so constructed that, when the cover is closed down, it will exert pressure upon the berries in the corners',` which is so distributed as topress both downward and toward the center of the box, thereby causing thefberries which are in the corners to be Vcompacted without bruising them before the cover of the box is lnailed on. Another object of the invention is to make this pressure device in form of a cleat across the ends ofthe cover to bind togetlieiand reenforcc the several strips which make up the cover.

rlhednvention will be fully understood from the following' description when taken iii-connection with the accompanying drawings, and tliewnovel features thereof will be pointed out and clearly defined in the claimsat the close of this specification.

ln? the drawings z Fig; 1 is aperspective view showing particularlytheiundcr side of the cover for a box embodying the invention.

Fig-.2 is a longitudinal section of the box with the cover removed.'

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of the box with the cover attached thereto, taken on the line 3-3 of Figl.

Fig. 4, is a transverse section of the box on line 4-4 of Fig. 3.

Referring now to the drawings, 1 repre sents the bottom of the box, 2 2 the two end walls, and 3-3 the two side walls. The box is preferably of the standard halfbarrel size, although the size is not material to the invention. It is preferably also made of wood of any desired thickness and width of board, the preferred thickness for this size box being about one-half inch which will give the requisite strength, there usually being several widths of board for each side and end wall, both because the relatively narrow widths are cheaper and also more convenient for purposes of ventilation.

Preferably also transverse cleats i are provided on the box bottom near the ends and also on the two box ends at the top and bottom, as shown in the drawings, for the purpose of strengthening or reenforcing the box.

The cover 5 is intended to be nailed on top of the box after the box has been filled. The cover is long enough to lap over the top edges of the ends and sides of the box, as shown in the drawings. r)The cover is provided with two transverse cleats 6-6 attached to the under side of the cover far enough in from the ends so that, when the cover is set down onto the box, the outer edges 7 of the cleats will just iit inside of the ends 2*2 of the box. The cleat has a beveled under face 8, as shown in the drawings, the thick edge 7 being adjacent the end wall and the beveled face 8 facing downward and inward toward the interior and somewhat toward the middle of the box, so that when the cover is put upon the box, after it has been filled, the said cleat forms a sort of wedge which exerts a pressure upon the body of the berries lying along the ends and in the corners. This presses them not only downward but toward the interior of the box, in such manner as to overcome the lodging or bridging of the berries in the corners, in which are formed the unnecessarily large interstices. rlhe thin edge 9 of the cleats is preferably not brought to a sharp edge. When the berries are first poured in, the pressure of the beveled face, being exerted in a direction at an angle to the ends and bottom of the box, not only is more effective in filling up the interstices, so far as the shape of the berries permits, but also is less liable to bruise the berries than if the pressure is exerted yat rightangles to the bottom or to the end walls.

Vhile l have shown and described the presser members as cleats extending for the full width of the interior of the box, the essential part of said members is that portion which is effective at the corners of the box; therefore, instead of having the presser members extend the entire width of the box, the intermediate portion might be omitted,

leaving only those portions which are adjacent the corners. It is preferable, however, to have the presser member extend entirely across, as shown and described, so that it will perform the double function of serving as a pressure device and as a cleat to tie together the narrow strips which make up the cover as well as to reenforce the cover.

The box is preferably formed with venti lating slots l0 in its several walls, including the cover. ln actual use, the box is usually turned upside down for shipment after the box has been filled and the cover fastened down, so that the member, which has been referred to the cover, becomes in fact the bottom of the box, but as it has the function of a cover at the time of packing it is so designated in the specifications and claims.

What claim is:

l. A packing box for berries having a cover provided with bevel faced members on its under side, which when the cover is closed fit in the corners of the box, the thicker edges of said presser members being adjacent the upright walls of the box so that the beveled faces exert a pressure on the berries in the box to press them downward and toward the middle of the box.

2. A rectangular packing box for berries having a cover adapted to close the top of the box, said cover having transverse bevel faced cleats adjacent its two ends, in such manner that when the cover is closed the thick edges of the cleats will be adjacent the inside of the end walls of the box and the beveled faces of the cleats will face inwardly and downwardly toward the interior of the box to press the berries toward the middle of the box.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

MARCUS L. URANN. 

